Canadian police warn crypto investors on growing home robbery trend

July 21, 2023 Coin Telegraph

Perpetrators have impersonated delivery drivers in order to break into the homes of victims to steal cryptocurrency.

A Canadian police department has issued a public warning of a possible trend where high-value cryptocurrency investors are being robbed in their own homes.

On July 19, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Richmond, a city south of Vancouver, said several similar robberies involving cryptocurrency investors have occurred over the last 12 months.

Staff Sergeant Gene Hsieh of the Richmond RCMP Major Crime Unit said someone is “targeting these victims for cryptocurrency" and believed a public warning was necessary for public safety.

Richmond RCMP and Delta Police

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Police issue warning to high-value cryptocurrency investors following home-invasion style robberies.

Date: 2023-07-19

For the full News Release, see below:https://t.co/27JLFKcV10 #DeltaPolice #DeltaBC pic.twitter.com/7CqONzUdUl
— Delta Police Department (@deltapolice) July 19, 2023

The RCMP didn’t release specific details on the incidents but explained in each case the perpetrator impersonated a delivery driver before robbing the victim.

“The suspects gain access to a victim’s home by posing as delivery people or persons of authority. Once let inside the home, the suspects rob the victims of information that gives access to their cryptocurrency accounts.”

Staff Sergeant Jill Long of the Delta Police Investigative Services said the suspects appear to know that the victims are “heavily” invested in cryptocurrency along with knowledge of where they live.

The police department confirmed it made one arrest but has not confirmed whether several incidents are linked. It did not provide specific details about the incidents or how much cryptocurrency was stolen as the investigations are still ongoing.

To avoid a home robbery the department advised not letting strangers or delivery people — whether seemingly legitimate or not — into the household and instead ask them to leave deliveries outside.

If in doubt, a call should be made to the delivery company to confirm the person’s identity and authorities should be called if danger is or appears imminent.

Valuables and financial information should be kept somewhere safe within the household, such as a safety box, the police advised.

More generally the police recommend only discussing financial matters in private — not on social media — and only with trusted people.

In March, Canada’s self-proclaimed “Crypto King” — Aiden Pleterski — was allegedly kidnapped, falsely imprisoned and assaulted by five men who fell for an apparent cryptocurrency scheme from Pleterski.

One of the men, who reportedly invested 740,000 Canadian dollars ($560,000) into the scheme, was charged with kidnapping Pleterski on July 17 according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

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SVB mixup forces India’s SVC Bank to issue a notice of clarification

March 15, 2023 Coin Telegraph

announcement

The similarity in the short forms of the two banks — SVB and SVC Bank — caused a mixup among a few Indian citizens as they took up the concern with the Mumbai-based bank.

The shockwaves caused by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) were felt by countless businesses, including a bank from India that had no relation with the California-based banking institution.

Soon after reports of SVB’s imminent shutdown surfaced on March 10, panic spread across the globe as investments tied to one the biggest banks in the US depicted an uncertain future. However, a Mumbai-based 116-year-old cooperative bank — Shamrao Vithal Co-operative Bank (SVC Bank) — got caught in the line of fire.

The similarity in the short forms of the two banks — SVB and SVC Bank — caused a mixup among a few Indian citizens as they took up the concern with the Indian bank.

Important announcement#HumSeHaiPossible #SVCBank #Banking #SVC #Importantannouncement pic.twitter.com/p05lHBJm9w
— SVC Bank (@SVC_Bank) March 11, 2023

Clarifying all doubts, SVC Bank issued an announcement distancing itself from the American bank that is now managed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The statement read:

“SVC Bank is completely unrelated to Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) that was based on California. SVC Bank reserves the right to take due legal action on rumor mongers for tarnishing its brand image.”

Furthermore, the Indian bank advised its members, customers and stakeholders to avoid the ongoing rumors of its shutdown. The announcement also disclosed the bank’s profitability in the last year.

On March 13, US President Joe Biden announced his plan to help out the fallen traditional banks, SVB and Signature Bank, “at no cost to the taxpayer.”

Thanks to actions we've taken over the past few days to protect depositors from Silicon Valley and Signature Banks, Americans can have confidence that our system is safe.

People’s deposits will be there when they need them – at no cost to the taxpayer.
— President Biden (@POTUS) March 13, 2023

On the other hand, Biden’s followers on Twitter highlighted that “everything you do or touch costs the taxpayer!”